Something I Can Never Have
by 82and9make91
Summary: When Vegeta and Bulma's relationship seems to reach a breaking point, Goku is forced to face his own feelings and becomes caught between what he feels and what he knows is the right thing to do.GokuxBulma
1. The Prologue

If you haven't read this story before then ignore this part and go straight to the Prologue and enjoy.

Where do I begin? Well a good old fashioned apology seems pretty good. I truly am sorry for making any one who has read this story wait so long for me to update. I know what it is like to read a fanfic and then having to wait for an update. I feel it is only fare that I explain myself and tell you why it has taken this long for the story to continue.

When I first started writing 'Something I Can Never Have', DBZ was the center of my anime world. It was the only anime I really had watched a great deal of (expect for one's from my childhood like Poke'mon, Yu-Gi-Oh, etc.) and at the time it was my all time favorite anime. But eventually I got into other animes like Bleach, One Piece, and Naruto. Once that happened I started to lose interest in DBZ and since then my love for it has steadily been decreasing. I still like it of course but it isn't my favorite of all time. For that reason I stopped writing this and I stopped reading or watching it almost all together. I've been busy with work, school, and other fanfics that I've been writing for other animes. So that's why I haven't updated.

I am re-uploading it as well. When it was first up I had a lot of comments about my grammar and spelling so I went back and corrected everything that I could. The story is the same but hopefully it will make more sense. In truth this was the first multiple chaptered story that I ever wrote. I had written a few one-shots for live actions TV shows and believe me they were really bad, both in grammar and the stories them selves. But through reading and writing more fanficion my abilities as a writer have greatly improved.

I can't promise that I will update the story soon or that It will even be this year, but I do promise that I will eventually finish this story and hopefully you will like it. So once again I'm very sorry for making you wait, but here it is at last. Enjoy!

* * *

**Prologue**

The entire city was buzzing in preparation of the 23rd world martial arts tournament. The streets and sidewalks were as crowded as they had ever been. It rained off and on through out the day, but at this moment the down poor had stopped.

Among the various groups of people crowding the sidewalk walked one group in particular.

In the back walked a young man with spiky black hair and a young woman with turquoise hair that rested on the sides of her pretty face.

"So Goku are you going to order everything on menu when we get to the restaurant?" The women asked playfully.

"Oh...well no Bulma" Goku said and put his hand behind his head. "I know how expensive that could be and I don't have any money. I don't want to cost Master Roshi too much, so maybe I'll only get half of it."

Bulma giggled and said "Well I'm sure he'll appreciate that."

The whole group continued walking until they reached there destination. It was the same restaurant they had eaten at the two previous times they were there for the tournament.

"Oh it's you again!" The man at counter said the moment he saw Goku walk in the door.

"Oh you remember me?" Goku said sheepishly and looked at the ground.

"Remember you! You ate almost all our food supplies that last time you were here!" He shrieked.

The whole group except for Goku laughed.

"I'm sorry sir, I promise I won't order nearly that much this time" Goku said as kindly as he could.

Yamacha walked over and placed his hand on Goku's shoulder. "Yeah, but I bet that will still be about half of what they have, huh?" The whole group laughed twice as hard as before.

"Well I've never turned down a paying costumer and I'm not starting now" he said and motioned for a waiter to come over.

"Thank you" Goku responded with a huge grin on his face.

They were all led to a table towards the back of the rather large restaurant and took their seats. Like most of the restaurants in the city that night, it was as packed as it could be.

At the head of the table sat Master Roshi with Krillin on the opposite end. To the old master's right sat Launch, Puar, Yamacha, and Bulma. To his left sat Tien, Chatzou, Oolong, and Goku, with Bulma sitting directly across from Goku.

The whole gang began digging into there dinner and true to his word Goku only order about half of the menu.

As the meal neared its end the whole group, except for Goku of course, was engaging in conversations. When he didn't hear her voice among the chaos Goku looked up at Bulma and saw that she was starring at him.

She quickly looked away and pretended that she hadn't been looking at him.

Goku smirked. "Are you all right Bulma?"

She looked back at him nervously "Oh yeah…umm…I just still can't believe how tall you've gotten!" She said with a smile.

"Well just wait Goku I'm going be taller then you some day I just know it…" Krillin interrupted.

_Way to go girl genius, make it obvious _She thought.

She noticed that Goku was now looking away and talking with Krillin. She again began to stare deeply at him.

It was still hard for her to believe that this young man that was sitting across from her was the same boy she nearly ran over with her car.

_Gosh, has it really only been three years? If it wasn't for his hair and his appetite I wouldn't know it was him! _She continued thinking.

She also couldn't help but notice that he was one of the most handsome men she'd ever seen. That's when her thoughts stopped being innocent and her mind started to go _different _places.

_Oh come on Bulma, its still Goku. What would you do? Wait for him to ask you out or something? He may be older but I doubt he's even interested in you that way. Besides his not really my type…well maybe he is, if I was into the kind, good natured, handsome, strong, heroic, selfless type. Which I could totally get into!_

"Bulma are you sure you're alright?" Goku's voice dragged her out of her day dreaming.

"Oh…yeah Goku, I'm just kind of tired" she responded as quickly as she could.

"Well we better get you to the hotel so you can rest" he said and stood from the table. Everyone was stunned that Goku would be the first to finish.

"It's fine, really! You're not even done eating yet!" She said franticly.

"Yes I am" he said simply.

Everyone looked down to see that Goku's seven plates were empty. Goku looked around quickly and noticed that he and Bulma were the only ones that were done.

"You and me could go back and everyone else could stay and finish" he said cheerfully.

"Uhh…Okay I guess" she said without thinking.

"Well come on then" he said and extended his hand across the table to help her up.

She took his hand and he helped her to her feet. Then they both made there way down the two sides of the large table.

When he reached the end Goku turned around and decided to tell the group what was going on.

"Me and Bulma are really tired and we decide that we better get back to the hotel. Good-bye everyone. I'll see you all in the morning!" he said finishing with a wave.

The group said there good-byes and Goku started heading for the exit with Bulma on his heals.

_Hmm…this is weird. Wait, why do I think that? This is something Goku always does. Putting the well being of someone else before his, why is it different now? Oh come on Bulma I think you get why. He isn't that nice little kid who use to follow you everywhere anymore. _Bulma's mind raced.

When she looked up again she saw that Goku had stopped in front of the door, and for good reason. It was raining again.

"Oooh it's coming down harder then ever" she proclaimed.

She stood next to him and at that moment remembered that she had left her umbrella back in her hotel room.

_Man Bulma, you're batting a thousand tonight _she mentally slapped herself.

"Forgot your umbrella, huh?" Goku asked happily.

"How'd you know? Did you learn how to read minds?" She asked extremely afraid if the answer was yes.

"Oh no, I just noticed you didn't have it with you, but that's okay you can use mine"

Goku swiftly took the red umbrella he had from its resting place on his back and handed it to her.

"You're a little taller then before Goku. Both of us won't be able to fit under it" she said rather matter of factly.

"Well yeah, your using it by yourself I don't need it" he said while taking off the blue robe he had been wearing reveling the black shirt underneath.

"Wh-what are you doing"? Bulma blurted out.

"Its really cold out there Bulma and you're not wearing much. You'll need this to keep warm" he said and extended his hand to her with the robe in it.

She looked down at what she was wearing and she had to admit the small blue dress she had on wasn't going to protect her much from the elements.

She looked up again and stammered "Oh I couldn't!"

"Its no problem" he smiled.

"But Goku you have the biggest tournament of your life tomorrow. You don't want to get sick the day before do you?" She said with concern in her voice.

"Bulma I swam in the coldest part of the ocean for three days strait, I think I can handle this. Besides I like the rain".

She looked down at the robe again and with every thought of the cold rain it looked warmer and warmer.

"Please…for me" he said and gave her the best puppy dog look he could muster.

"….Oh all right" she said and took it from him with a hint of defeat in her voice. She placed it over her shoulders. _Wow! It's really warm._

"Great! Alright let's get going" Goku cheered.

They both walked out the door and Bulma was instantly grateful for the robe and umbrella.

They walked swiftly through the pouring rain. She looked over at Goku who was looking at the sky with his hands at his sides and one of his trademark smiles on his face. She also couldn't help but notice that he was completely soaked in water.

She looked down at herself and was shocked by how dry she was.

"You know you're too nice sometimes!" She shouted to which he gave her a puzzled look.

"Your going to get sick, and then your going to lose tomorrow, and then it will be all my fault!" She screeched.

By now her screams had attracted the attention of a few people passing by.

She glared at him and he gave her a confused look for a few seconds before he burst into laughter.

"What?" She asked with the venom coming out of her voice.

"Well even if I get sick, as long as you're in the crowd cheering for me there's nothing I can't do" he said as if she should have known.

At first Bulma thought that statement was silly, how could her screaming voice matter among thousands, but then she realized the deeper, almost poetic, meaning behind it. Even though she doubted Goku meant for it to sound that way, she still didn't know what to say.

"….I guess" she decided on.

They continued walking in silence for a few minutes and Goku could tell it was bothering her.

"So Bulma what have you been doing lately?" He asked politely.

"Well I've been working with my dad. I'm becoming more involved in actually running the company".

"Do you like doing that?" He asked.

"Sometimes I do, but sometimes it can be a real pain in the neck."

"Well I hope it gets better" he tried to encourage her.

"Yeah…what about you? What was Kami's training like?" She was trying desperately to get the topic off of herself.

"Oh it was hard!" He said with a chuckle. "Kami said it's the hardest kind of training anyone on Earth has gone through."

"Well I bet your really strong now!" She said with her words full of cheer.

Goku rubbed the back of his head. "I may be a little stronger" he said nervously.

They continued walking down the sidewalk. The rain had slowed down but was still coming down fairly hard. Now it was Bulma's turn to come up with something to say.

"So…" her mind was drawing a blank. All she could do was ask him a question she had on her mind from the moment she realized he was Goku.

"Did you think about me?"

Goku took a moment before he responded and hoped she didn't notice. She did but thought nothing of it.

"Well yeah, everyday!"

"Oh…what did you think about?" She asked desperately trying to hide the fact that she was blushing a little.

"What were you doing? Were you happy? Were you sad? Pretty much everything" He said looking to the sky again. "Yeah, I thought about you and everyone during the hardest parts."

"I thought about you a lot to" she said and looked down at her feet. They continued on for a few steps.

"Bulma, I think this is it" Goku said as she walked passed him.

She turned around to see Goku standing in front of the entrance pointing a fingerer at the door.

"Duh" she said to herself and slapped her forehead.

They made their way inside and took the stairs up to the floor their rooms were on. They walked down the hall and made it to the two doors that were entrances to there separate rooms.

Bulma had both keys so she unlocked her door on the left first and then Goku's on the right.

"Well I guess this is good night" She said.

"Yep"! He agreed.

She started walking inside and then she remembered. "I still have all your stuff". She took off the robe and tried to hand it to him, but he put his hands up in protest.

"You can keep it! The umbrella to, I won't be needing them"

"Are-are you sure?"

"Yeah, it could be a cold one tomorrow to and I don't want anything to happen to you" he said quickly with a hint of nervousness in his voice. "Well see you in the morning" he said suddenly and waved as he closed the door behind him.

"Huh, that was weird" she whispered to herself and closed the door softly.

_...I wonder_.

******************************************  
He couldn't take it anymore. Goku couldn't sleep and it wasn't just because of Krillin's snoring.

He pushed the covers off and rubbed his eyes with his fist. He got out of bed and walked to the window where he saw the rest of the gang arrive two hours ago, just about fifteen minutes behind Bulma and him.

He looked out at the bright noisy city and wondered why anyone would want to live here, but that wasn't the reason he couldn't sleep. It was far from it.

It was because of a certain blue eyed girl that was sleeping in the next room.

He felt everything build up inside of him and he thought he might go crazy if he didn't tell someone soon. In the end he knew there was only one person he could think of who might have some answer.

He moved quietly to the door and opened it. He took one last look at Krillin to make sure he was still asleep then walked into the dark hallway and closed the door softly behind him.

Goku took a left making sure not even to glance at the door on his right. He got to the last door in the hall and knocked on it softly.

"Master…" he whispered.

When he didn't hear anything but snoring inside he became impatience. With no effort he pushed the door and shattered the lock.

_Something else Master Roshi will have to pay for _he thought with regret.

"Master?" He said in a louder voice.

"Oh yeah baby…I'm the turtle hermit. What's your name?" He heard the familiar voice mumble. Goku looked down to see the sleeping Master Roshi with a smile on his face.

He smirked _at least some things never change._

"Master Roshi" he said in his normal speaking voice.

"What-where-who?" The old master blurted out and fell out of bed. Goku caught him easily with one hand. Then he placed him carefully back on the bed.

By now the older man could sense that there was no danger and he flicked on the lamp on the nightstand and grabbed his trademark sunglass.

"Well it's just you Goku!" He said after putting them on.

"I'm sorry for waking you master…I just wanted to talk about something" Goku said while looking at the floor.

"Well sure. Are you nervous about the tournament?" Roshi asked.

He looked up and said with confidents "No, that's not it; actually I've never felt better about a tournament before".

"Then what is it?"

Goku let out a sigh and started passing back and forth. "It's…Bulma"

"Well-"

"Please, I don't mean to be rude but I just have to get this out first" Goku cut him off before he had time to speak.

"Kami's training was the hardest training I've ever been through. No offence of course"

Roshi nodded in response.

"And when I wasn't training all I could really do was sit there and watch the clouds roll by. I thought about everybody, but mostly I thought about her…"

Roshi had a feeling deep in his stomach about where this was going.

"…you know how much I care about her. Heck, even now I see Bulma as more of a god then a girl, hmm… I guess she isn't even a girl anymore. I can't help this feeling I get when I'm around her. I'm nervous but I'm also excited and happy. Sometimes I just stare at her. Like early today, the whole lipstick thing, I had to make that up because she noticed that I was looking at her lips". He ran his hand through his hair and looked down at his former master.

Roshi opened his mouth to say something and Goku cut him off again knowing what he was about to say.

"But I know why I did that. I remember the talk you had with me before I left. I know there are other reason's for the way she makes me feel. Its strange…it always felt like Bulma was at the top of this latter that I wasn't tall enough to reach, but now I think I've gotten tall enough, I mean physically and uhh…I'm sorry I'm probably not making any sense".

Goku laughed softly and sat down next to the older man. Then he laid down with his arms behind his head and stared at the ceiling with content.

"No Goku…you make perfect sense. What do you plan to do?" Roshi asked.

"I'm going to tell her! I don't know what I'm going to tell her or what I'm going to say, but tomorrow morning before the tournament start's I'm going to talk with her and tell her everything!" With that Goku hopped up and started to walk back and forth again, but this time he had more energy in his steps and he was smiling uncontrollably.

Roshi thought long and hard for a few seconds before he decided on what the best advice would be. Once he found the right words in his mind he knew that they could be hurtful but he also knew that he had to do what he thought was right.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you Goku" Roshi voiced was as serious as Goku had ever heard it.

"What? Why not?" He responded in utter confusion.

Roshi let out a sigh and began.

"Please don't take this the wrong way Goku, but…you were right Bulma isn't a girl anymore she's a young women and you…well I think your still a boy. Not that you're not worthy to be with her, but I don't think you're mature enough to handle something like that. I'll be the first to tell you that I'm no where near a relationship expert, but I've been around long enough to know that if you start one at such a young age it won't be as strong as it should be. My best advice for you would be to wait a while. Maybe in a few years you're be ready. Until then I suggest you remain silent about what you feel".  
The old turtle hermit had to take a long breath after that speech. When he looked up he saw Goku motionlessly looking at the ground.

Goku's mind raced. How could he keep what he felt in? It was the strongest feeling he had every felt before. In the back of his mind however he knew that his teacher had never led him down the wrong path before.

"I…guess…" he was able to force out after about a minute.

"It won't be easy, but it's for the best" Roshi tried to reassure him.

All Goku could do was stand there. He felt like he had just been kicked in the stomach and it felt worse then any blow he'd been hit with before. All the happiness and excitement that had been building up inside him since he started to talk was being drained away.

He gathered himself together and said quickly "I'm sorry for disturbing you, I'll go back to bed now".

"Oh…okay" was all Roshi could get out before Goku started for the door.

Goku smirked and headed out the door. "Oh and sorry about your lock" he said sheepishly before he shut the door behind him.

Some of the bad feelings he had were gone but they all came back when he looked at the door next to his. He looked down as quickly as he saw it, but it didn't help. He went into his room swiftly and silently. He looked over to see that Krillin hadn't moved an inch.

He crawled into bed and look at the white chipping ceiling.

Again his mind was racing. Every part of him told him that Master Roshi was wrong, but he also knew that his wise teacher had always done what was best for him even if it hurt him at first. Through all of the chaos in his mind he wondered how he would ever get to sleep. Then he remembered an old trick he had learned during his traveling. All he had to do was think of one fact in the whole argument and focuses on it. He found one and it made him smile. And he quickly began to drift to sleep.

With all of his heart, he was in love with Bulma Briefs.

* * *

"_I'm sure you've heard it all before  
But you never really had a doubt  
I don't believe that anybody feels  
The way I do about you now"_

**-Wonderwall, By Oasis**


	2. Chapter One: Keeping A Secret

**Something I Can Never Have**

**Chapter One: Keeping A Secret**

Flying is an amazing thing.

I still like riding the nimbus to get where I have to go. Of course I can fly fifty times faster, and I can get anywhere I want in a second with instant transmission, but sometimes I like to take it slow. The nimbus reminds me of better times.

Happier times.

I was lying on my back with my hands behind my head. I watched as the clouds drifted by and for a few seconds I forgot where I was going, but once nimbus slowly started to descend I rolled over and saw a large city getting closer. I recognized the West City skyline immediately and I saw the Capsule Corp building in the middle.

"Bulma" I said quietly to myself.

Just hearing her name makes me happy. It had become our tradition to meet and talk every Thursday. Of course she did most of the talking but I think we both like it better that way.

It had been two years since Buu had been destroyed and the world, for the most part, was at peace. I half love times of peace had half hate them. It's always great for the world not to be threatened, but it feels like all there is nothing to do except train. Even for me that gets boring.

I looked down again and saw that I was almost there so I stood up, bent my knees and jumped off. I landed in the middle of the street right in front of the main entrance.

I made my way to the door and the blue box that was next to it immediately caught my eye. I pressed one of the green buttons on it and it started to speak.

"May I help you?" A robotic voice asked.

"Yeah it's me Goku, I'm here!" I say cheerfully.

The box was silent a few seconds before it said "Please enter."

The door opened and I walked inside.

I've never quite gotten use to how huge the Capsule Corp building is. It still blows my mind to think that a family lives here. Bulma once told me it was about twenty times bigger then the average house in the city. Of course it's more then just a home, there are several small factories and lab's everywhere.

I walked swiftly down a hallway that I've walked down countless times before. I was heading for the kitchen. No, I surprisingly wasn't hungry; I was just looking for someone and seeing how the kitchen was at the center of the large building, it only made sense to start there. I didn't hear a single voice echoing off the walls. I knew it was a big place but with five people living here I should hear something.

I entered the large room and saw that no one was in there, but I did feel a presence getting closer from behind me. I didn't even have to turn around to know who it was.

"Goku, at least you could have said 'hello' before you make for the kitchen!" Bulma said happily.

"Oh I was just looking for you Bulma" I said sheepishly as I turned around.

"Yeah, yeah" she said and started to push me in the kitchen.

Once she got me all the way into the massive room she turned me around all the way and quickly embraced me in a hug. Her hair, which she let grow out since the Buu crisis, hit me in the face. I didn't really care though. I was to busy trying to keep my heart from beating to fast. She held me longer then normal and for a second I thought it was strange.

I just shrugged off my thoughts and returned the hug picking her up in the process.

"Put me down Goku, you're going to break me in half!" She yelped between laughs.

I placed her down softly and said "You know I'd never do that Bulma"

"Oh I know" she said and put her hands on my shoulders. She started to push me and I began to walk backwards. She guided me to and chair and pushed down making me sit in it.

"Okay, I want to know everything, what you've been up to, how's the family, have you saved the world lately…?"

She stopped mid sentence and opened the fridge. She started to place various jars on the counter and I could see where this was going.

"That's okay Bulma, I'm really not hungry"

She laughed softly and turned around. "Goku, the day your not hungry is the day the world stops spinning. Besides if my mother were here she would be getting on to me for not '_treating my guest properly' _"

Her impression of her mother was perfect and I laughed. "Where are your mom and everyone else?"

"Well my parents are on vacation, Trunks is at a sleepover, and Uhhh…Vegeta is on one of his 'trips'. So yeah, I'm pretty much all by myself here" she answered with a hint of sadness in her voice. She continued pulling things out and placing them on the counter.

Bulma's cooking skills didn't go much farthing then making sandwiches, but I wasn't complaining. We both became silent and I sat there with a smile on my face as I watched her move across the kitchen.

I don't know how much time passed but Bulma pulled me out of my trance.

"Goku….Goku?"

"Oh…sorry I was just daydreaming. What were we taking about?" I said as innocently as I possibly could.

"Just the fact that my whole family pretty much abandoned me" she laughed at her own dark humor.

"That's not true…I'm here"

She stopped what she was doing and stood there for a second before she turned around.

"Has anyone every told you that your to nice sometimes?"

"Just this one crazy girl" I replied.

She smiled and gave me one of her trademark winks. My heart did a back flip in my chest, but I just smiled back politely.

"Peanut butter and jelly is still your favorite right?" She asked and turned back around.

"Yeah, you know me! Do you need any help"? I said and stretched my arms above my head.

"No, I think by now I could even beat one of my robots when it comes to making a bunch of sandwiches" she said and started making sandwiches in an assembly line style.

We both went silent for a while. I knew that long silent's bothered her. Bulma is a talker there's no doubt about that.

"So are you going to tell me how things are going or am I going to have to drag it out of you?" her voice rang through out the building.

"Oh…wouldn't you rather talk over lunch?" I said innocently.

She laughed "Same old Goku!"

Bulma eventually finished making a mountain of sandwiches and placed them in front of me. She sat across from me at the table with a sandwich of her own.

I quickly started to make the mountain despiser and Bulma started the conversation.

Sometimes I think she'll pass out from how fast she talks. She went on about everything from what was happening in the world to what was happening with her neighbors. Every now and then I would give my opinion or just nod to say that I agreed.

Through out the whole conversation, however, I noticed something. Something was off. If I didn't know her as well as I did I would have never noticed. Every once and a while she would say something differently then she normally did, her voice being a little higher pitched at times. Then sometimes she would softly touch my hand or arm while her voice changed. She did that all the time when she was talking with someone, but some how it felt different. I thought about it and once we were both done it hit me.

She was hiding something.

"…and then I told her that it was my yard and I could do what ever I wanted in it! Do you know what she did?" Bulma asked happily.

I shock my head.

"She turned around and stormed off, but when she got in her yard she fell right on her face!" She immediately burst into laugher.

That was the last straw. I knew her laugh; it is one of my favorite sounds. That laugh she just did wasn't genuine it was forced. She wasn't happy but she was trying to cover it up.

"What's wrong?" I asked abruptly.

She stopped laughing and asked "Wh-what do you mean?"

I wasn't sure what I was going to say, but I decided just to keep going.

"Is everything alright? You seem a little…nervous"

She stared off into space for a bit and stood up. "Why would I be?"

Before I had a chance to respond she took my plate and hers and headed for the sink. I turned my head and watched as she quickly began to wash our plates and what ever other dirty dishes that were lying around.

As I sat there and watched I began to feel what she was feeling.

Bulma and I have this…connection. I can feel what she's feeling. I can do it with anyone if I concentrate hard enough, but with her it's a constant. Not that I feel every little thing, but when she feels really happy, sad, angry, or any other emotion strongly I feel it to.

Right now she was feeling a mixture of things and all of them were very strong.

"Bulma if something's wrong you can tell me" I said as confidently as my voice would allow.

She just froze and looked out the window at the setting sun. Once again time passed by and I lost track of it. After a while I knew I had to do something.

"Bulma?" I asked as I stood up.

Then it was like the damn in her mind broke and all the emotions she had held back came flooding out at once. She put her hands on the counter and started to slowly cry.

I felt the strongest emotions at once. It was fear and absolute rage directed at one person.

Vegeta.

"Is it something with Vegeta? Because I can talk to him if-"

"No, Goku" she interrupted. Even though her voice was full of pain it was good to hear her speak again.

"Please don't do anything. Just forgot it. It's…it's time for you to leave anyway" she was desperately trying to hold back her tears.

"You know me well enough to know that I'm not going anywhere until you tell me"

"Damit…your right" she said trying to laugh but couldn't.

"So what is it? You know you can tell me anything." By now it's driving me crazy not knowing what's bothering her so much.

I walked over to her and stood at her side. She continued to look out the window with tears now coming freely from her eyes. I knew she hated crying, so seeing that she didn't have the strength to hold her tears back made me realize that this was serious.

"Promise me something Goku…" she said with her breathing beginning to become uneven

"Anything"

"Don't try to do something about it…" She turned so that we were staring at each other. Her deep blue eyes memorized me. It was then that I noticed something. The skin under her right eye was _melting ?_

Of course that was crazy. I looked closer and saw that her tears were making the make up under her eyes run. It reviled a black and blue bruise under her eye.

"Bulma what happened?" I asked quickly and reached over to wipe the rest off her face. Looking back it should have been obvious, but my mind was drawing a blank.

I finished revealing the bruise and she slowly started to talk.

"I-I don't think he meant to…we were fighting again about…oh hell I can't even remember, but we were yelling and he-he just swung…"

One second went by and like and explosion it clicked in my head. I couldn't speak, I couldn't breath, and all I could do was stare blacking at her. It felt like the whole room was closing in around me and it was becoming dark.

Then in the back of my mind I felt a powerful feeling growing. It was quickly making its way towards the front of my mind. I knew what it was. It was absolute rage.

I felt myself beginning to lose control and I set up a wall in my mind to control it. The wall was quickly beginning to crumble and I tried to hold on but it felt like there was no meaning.

Then I gave in and let the wall fall.

I felt the familiar rush of energy and ascended to a Super Sayian. I screamed and the room filled with golden light. Finally words forced there way out of my throat.

"THAT MONSTER, HE'LL PAY"!

_tbc._

* * *

_Ya see that little green review thingy? You want to click it don't you!_


	3. Chapter Two: Eye Of The Beholder

**Chapter Two: Eye Of The Beholder**

My heart was pounding, my finger nails were digging into my palms making a crimson liquid drip from my hands, and I could feel myself quickly ascending towards Super Saiyan two.

Then I felt two soft arms wrap around me.

"Goku no! You promised remember! Just calm down, change back please!" Bulma cried out.

My rage had overtaken me, but slowly I felt myself regain conciseness. I began to change back and the kitchen was robbed of its light. Then I put my arms at my sides. My change back was completed when my hair fell and returned to its normal black.

"Fine…wh-what ever you want" my horse voice was able to say.

"I-I just want someone to be here" she said and buried her head into my chest and cried.

I was still in shock so I just stood there a couple of seconds, but then something in me snapped and I was tired of not having anything to say. I shock myself out of my daze.

What she had told me about Vegeta and what he had done was still on my mind, but I choose to forget it for now and focus on the task at hand. Bulma needed me and I was going to help her.

"It's going to be all right Bulma" I said in my most reassuring voice and embraced her back.

All I could remember about the next hour was Bulma crying. I lead her to the couch in the living room and we both sat down. The whole time she never let go of me. She didn't say anything she just cried. It was like she was letting out all of the tears she had held back all her life.

And I…I did all I could. I rubbed her back and said everything would be fine even though I didn't know if it would be. I had lost track of time and really I didn't care. I would be there as long as it would take.

After a while the tears stopped. I think it was because she just didn't have anymore. Then she finally started to talk.

"You must think I'm so weak and pathetic" she said in a quiet voice. She was on my right side with her left arm holding onto my right shoulder and her head lying on my left one.

"…I mean, he did that to me and here I am crying about it" she continued.

"You're not weak Bulma. To have gone through all that you have in your life and still be the great person you are proves it. I wish I had half of your strength".

She looked up at me and I looked down at her. The large blue eyes that stared up at me were no longer full of tears, but they were shining with gratitude.

"You always know the right thing to say" she proclaimed and squeezed me tightly.

We remade silent for another few minutes and my thoughts began to dance inside my head. There was something about holding Bulma in my arms that felt so…right. Even with the terrible circumstances just sitting there with her was making me happier then I'd been for weeks. Maybe it was wishful thinking, but I could have sworn that for a second here and there she felt the same way.

"You want to know something?" She asked breaking the silence.

"What?"

"I hate it when you become a Super Saiyan."

"Why?"

"It's your eyes. They scare me. Their so…unforgiving and full of hate, their nothing like your real ones". I looked down again but she was staring at the darkness.

To tell you the truth I didn't know how to respond to that. I never really looked at me own eyes for very long.

After a while she seemed to be drifting off to sleep and I didn't see a reason not to let her. Eventually she went to sleep and all that could be heard in all of Capsule Corp was her breathing. It was sort of ironic. An hour ago I was losing myself to my rage and now everything was perfectly calm. I took this time to think about what just happened.

Could Vegeta have really done it? I thought after all of these years he had truly begun to change especially after the Buu crisis. The way he reacted when I told him what happened to Bulma and the others made me think that he had finally begun to think about someone other then himself.

Again could Vegeta really have done it? If he really meant to hurt her she would have more then a black eye. Of course I believe Bulma, but I still don't know everything. Maybe he just lost control.

Wait…no. That's no excuse. I've been incredibly mad at Chi-Chi before but I would never lay a hand on her. I guess he is just completely unpredictable. I mean, I was one person with the guy and I don't understand him. All I know well about him is his fighting style.

The entire time all I could imagine was him standing there with one of his smirks on his face. The thought alone made my eyes start to change color. This time however I had control of myself. I hate losing control like I did earlier. It makes me fell so…_inhuman._

I felt a movement on my left shoulder and I suddenly remembered the beautiful woman that was holding me. I looked down and saw that Bulma had adjusted herself so she could hold me tighter.

_"I'm the prettiest girl you'll ever see buster"!_

I can still remember exactly the way she said that. She had been right. I've been around the world thousands of times and even the universe once or twice and I haven't met anyone as pretty as her.

Even back then I thought she was beautiful, but it was more like the way you think a sunset is beautiful. Once I got older it was for _different _reasons.

As I watched her sleep an old feeling that I thought I had forgotten resurfaced. It was love for her. Of course I loved Bulma in the way that two close friends love each other, but I knew this was different. I had moved passed that hadn't I? It was just a childish crush…wasn't it?

I guess I had spent years trying to forget. It must have not worked because I haven't felt this way in a very long time. Not even towards Chi-Chi. When I thought of my wife I remembered that I was supposed to be home by now. I looked over at the nearest clock which happed to be on the wall.

_10:55 _it read.

_I better get home before Chi-Chi decides to actually kill me _I thought.

I slowly picked Bulma up trying not to wake her, but I don't think it mattered, she was out like a light. I walked swiftly through the empty house and made it to the stairs. Bulma's room was the first door on the right.

I removed the covers from the bed and placed her in it. I took off her shoes and that was it. The baggy shirt and shorts she was wearing looked fine for sleeping in anyway. I laid her gently on the bed and covered her up.

I looked down at her and the black and blue around her eye made my temper flair, but it wasn't the time for that. I have to get home.

I put two fingers to my forehead and took one look at her. Then I started to concentrate on a small home in the middle of the mountains. In a blink of an eye I was standing in front of my home.

It was an usually cold night even for the mountains. Everything was illuminated in bright moon light. I looked up in the sky and saw the full moon.

_Good thing I don't have my tail anymore _was the thought that came to my head. Even if I was in my transformed state I wouldn't be prepared for the storm I knew was coming.

I opened the door and walked inside. It was dark but I could still see light coming from the kitchen and from up stairs. I made my way as quietly as possible towards the kitchen.

"Well if it isn't Goku" I heard an anger filled voice call from the top of the stairs.

There she was at the top of the stairs with her arms crossed and tapping her foot fiercely on the floor.

"Oh…hey Chi-Chi" I said in as clueless a voice as I could possible do. I know I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed, but I'm nowhere near as naive as everyone thinks I am. However I've found that people sometimes let you out of tight spots if they think you're an idiot.

"Do you have any idea what time it is"? She asked in a venom filled voice.

"I know it's late…I just lost track of time over at Bulma's"

She didn't respond, instead she started walking swiftly down the stairs.

"Honestly Goku, I don't know why you spend so much time with her _I'm _your wife after all" By now she was standing right in front of me.

"I could _never_ forget that Chi-Chi" I said as I walked passed her. I didn't mean for it to sound as cold as it did, but it just came out that way.

"What's that supposed to mean"? She yelled and instantly covered her mouth with both hands. I gave her a confused look.

"I just put Goten to bed" she whispered. Gohan had moved out and was living in an apartment with Videl, so it was just the three of us. We were silent a few seconds and I decided to take advantage of this ceasefire and apologies.

"I'm sorry Chi-Chi; I just had to help Bulma with something" I whispered back.

"Hm, how is it that you are always so welling to help Bulma when ever she needs it but you can't get home to your family on time" Chi-Chi proclaimed. Her voice had lost some of the edge it had earlier.

"It was…something important. I had to stay longer then I was planning. I'm really sorry Chi-Chi it won't happen again".

"You bet it won't" she said as loudly as she dared and pointed an accusing figure at me. "I don't want you to go see Bulma by yourself ever again".

"What? You can't control me like that"! I blurted out not caring how loud my voice got.

"Shhhhhh"! She screeched.

All I could do was give her an anger filled look. I couldn't think of anything else to say and I could really care less about keeping the argument going. I started to walk away in no particular direction.

"Where are you going"? She hissed trying desperately to whisper.

I didn't feel like saying another word but I responded anyway "I'm going to bed"

"No! Your going to listen to me, you have to understand that-"

"I SAID I WAS SORRY CHI-CHI"! I screamed and punched the coffee table in front of me. The table exploded and the pieces scattered all over the still darkened room. I was shocked by how easily I snapped.

I looked over and saw something I'll never forget. Chi-Chi was standing against the wall and she was shaking. She was covering her mouth with both hands and she had tears in her eyes. She was afraid, she was almost never afraid. More troubling was that she was afraid of _me_.

Then a sickening thought came to my head.

Could this have been what it was like for Vegeta? Could it have been a meaningless argument that went to far? Could I have done the same thing to Chi-Chi if she was standing closer to me?

All I could to do was stand there and look at my hand in horror. _No…no I wouldn't, I'm not like him_.

"Go-Goku"? Chi-Chi's shaky voice asked.

"I'm…sorry Chi-Chi… I didn't mean to react like that" I forced the words out of my mouth. I lowered my hands to my sides and tried to gain more confidents in my voice.

"I'm sorry…for everything, not being home on time and for this" I pointed at the spot where a coffee table uses to be.

"No Goku, I'm sorry" she replied. I was glad to hear that her voice wasn't shaking anymore. "I shouldn't have made such a big deal out of it. I know you were probably doing the right thing by staying"

I looked at her and she stood confidently with her hands entwined in front of her. Something about what she said and how she said it made me think she was just giving in to end it and that she still thought she was right. Either way I was glad she wanted it to end.

"I'm gonna pick all this up and go to bed".

She opened her mouth as if to protest, but she decided against it. "Well dinners in the oven. I'll go and heat it up for you".

"No that's okay…I'm not hungry".

"Are-are you sure"? She stammered. I had to stop myself from laughing at the look on her face.

"Yeah I'm just really tried, but hey, we'll have more for tomorrow" I made sure to finish with a grin. "Oh and I think I want to sleep on the couch tonight".

I could tell she immediately wanted to ask why, but she kept her mouth shut about it.

"Well…alright then…good night" she said softly and headed for the stairs.

"Chi-Chi" I said was she reached the first step.

"Yes"

"Everything's fine you have nothing to worry about". I had done some convincing speeches in my day, but I think at that moment I made my voice as assuring as any person ever has.

She nodded and started up the stairs. I watched as she reached the top and looked down, then she gave me a final wave and left. When she did the smile I had been faking went with her.

To say I was perplexed would be an understatement. I decided before I did anything or even thought about anything I was going to clean up the mess I made.

It took me about five minutes and I made sure to take my time.

I really as tired, but with how fast my mind was racing I thought I'd never sleep again. I lied down on the couch and looked at the chipped ceiling.

Something about everything seemed familiar…yes that was it, the night before the tournament. I started to remember everything that happened that night. Luckily for me it gave me a distraction, well sort of.

"Wow, I really fell hard for her" I whispered. That to was an understatement, I really didn't fall, I slammed onto the pavement and my brains splattered all over the ground. Do I still feel the same way?

Sure I get weak in the knees if she smiles or winks at me, but doesn't she have that effect on all men?

The more I think about how I 'use' to feel the more amazed I was about just how head over heels I was. If she had asked me to take the whole universe on I would have done it.

I can't help but wonder what could have happened if I had told her how I felt. What was the worse thing that could have happened? She would have laughed in my face and told me I was confused? I could live with that. At least I would know that she knew and maybe if she had known she would have stopped me from marring Chi-Chi.

I care about Chi-Chi greatly but, I don't think what we have is love. I guess…I could never give my heart to her because it hasn't belonged to me for years. Then why did I marry her? Well to put it simply, I was stupid, well more naive really. I had this crying girl in front of me and I'd just wanted to make her feel better. I figured I'd do the marriage thing for a while then I would get to tell Bulma how I felt. Then like a needle that was jabbed strait into my heart I realized it

I was still in love with Bulma Briefs.

_Then how could I have let this happen to her? _I thought.

When Trunks first told me that Bulma and Vegeta were destined to be together I didn't know what to think. They were the two most hard headed people I had ever met. They seemed too much alike. I like to think relationships should be between people who are almost completely opposites of each other. Like two pieces of a puzzle fitting together.

I didn't see any reason not to let it happen. She seemed happy, or at least she did. That brought me back to the beginning of this whole mess and I clinched my fist in anger.

Could he have not meant to do it? Was it an accident? I could have done the same thing to Chi-Chi, but I didn't. What was I going to do about it anyway?

My eyelids started to feel heavy and I closed my eyes. I guess even after everything I really was tired. I decided it was best to try and push everything out of my mind and deal with it after I had some sleep and to my surprise it actually started to work.

Slowly but surely I drifted off to sleep thinking that for now my problems were gone. Little did I know that they would follow me into my dreams…

_The whole world seemed to be covered in darkness, but then there was a spot light that came down form the heavens and it was right on top of me._

_I was standing in front of a mirror and like any other mirror I saw my reflection looking back at me. I was wearing my regular fighting cloths and I had a neutral expression on my face._

_Then out of the corner in my eye I noticed something move behind my right leg. I looked down to see what it was._

_It was a…tail slowly moving back and forth. It couldn't be attached to me, it was to low. As quickly as it appeared it was gone._

_I looked in the mirror again and standing right next to my right leg was…me when I was eleven years old! I looked down again but there was nothing there. Sure enough however, there he was standing there with a grin on his face. It was like he was part of my reflection._

_Then when I thought it couldn't get any stranger there was a golden light coming from my left side. I looked at my reflection and saw the source of the light. It was me again except this time I was and adult and I was a Super Sayian. His arms were crossed and he was looking off into the distance._

_"So what are we going to do about it"? He asked with hate in his voice._

_"Wh-what do you mean"? I shuddered._

_"We can't just sit back and do nothing"! He shouted._

_"But..." a small voice spoke up. "Bulma asked us not to do anything"_

_It was of course the younger version of me and he had a sad expression on his face. "We saw how sad she already was. We can't make it worse"._

_"I don't know…" I was able to force out._

_"You know he is out there somewhere with a smirk on his face and he is probably proud of himself" The golden haired me whispered into my ear._

_"Your right" I agreed to which he nodded victoriously._

_"You know she'll hate us if we hurt him, we have to talk with him first" the boy spoke up._

_He was giving me a look I used thousands of times before. It was saying to trust him and that his way was best._

_"Vegeta only understands one language and you know we can speak it better then him" The older me interrupted._

_"I…" I started to say, but no words followed. It felt like I was spinning and the strange sensation that you can only find in a dream filled my senses. Then at the same time both voices screamed at me._

_"You have to decide"!_

_In reaction I screamed back "No"!_

_I balled my fingers into a fist and slammed it against the glass .It gave in easily and shattered. The dark world I had been in was filled with pure light and I heard a small voice calling me out of my sleep…_

"Dad are you okay"! I heard a small but powerful voice call out to me.

I awake from my dream, or nightmare, to find that I was in a cold sweat and my youngest son was standing next to me with concern on his face.

"Yeah Goten…it was just a dream" I said as if I was trying to convince myself.

"Are you sure? Cus I could hear you yelling all the way from up stairs and you don't look so great even though you're a Super Sayian". He blurted out all in one breath.

"Wha-"? I got out before I tried to run a hand threw my hair only to find it was standing strait up. _That's never happened before._

"Dad"? Goten asked eagerly.

I looked down and placed my hand on his shoulder. "I'm fine Goten, go back to bed"

"Well…okay" he answered.

He made his way up the stairs and when he got to the top I called out softly "And make sure not to wake your mother".

He nodded and left.

When he did I noticed my reflection in a near bye mirror. It was the large one that we had right in front of the door. I decided to take a look at myself despite what I had just dreamt.

Luckily I saw only one reflection with teal eyes staring back at me. That's when I remembered what Bulma had said earlier. So I got closer and looked deeper into my own eyes. I was surprised by what I found.

They scarred me to.

It had been a long day to say the least and never in my life had so many questions gone without answers in such a short amount of time. Was I really in love with Bulma? Did Vegeta do this on purpose? How is this going to affect everything else in my life?

Despite how many questions I have and despite what I may feel, I've always known the best way to solve a problem was to go to the source. Above everything else I know what I have to do.

I have to find Vegeta.

_tbc._

* * *

_Well what did you think? Again please no bashing it will all make sense in the end. That blackeye line was just for you Racheal!_


	4. Chapter Three: Patience Is A Virtue

**Chapter Three: Patience Is A Virtue**

Some people say the world is shrinking, but to me it's still as big and full of undiscovered secrets as I was young. Of course the universe sees Earth as an insignificant speck; however, I know its much more then that. Even with all of my power and speed the Earth was still keeping a secret from me. I couldn't find Vegeta anywhere.

I had left home earlier that morning, or possibly late that night. I made sure to leave a note for Chi-Chi of course. In it I told her I had things to do, but I made sure to promise that I'd be back for breakfast.

Then I began my search. I searched everywhere I could, which was pretty much everywhere. I used all of my power sensing abilities and yet I found no trace of him. Why would Vegeta be hiding his power level? Did he know that Bulma would tell me? It wasn't like Vegeta to surprise his power. It was something he liked to show off.

_Maybe he left the planet _I thought as I headed home.

I had given up my searched for now. I learned a long time ago that despite all the amazing things I can do I'm still only one man and I have limits.

Bulma didn't say if he took one of her ships, but she didn't really say much about what had happened. I decided that after breakfast I was going to go to her place to see how she was and then I'd ask her more.

When my mind drifted to Bulma my stomach went into knots. I smiled, but I quickly brushed it off because I had arrived at my destination. The sun was just beginning to rise over the mountains when I landed in front of the door. When I walked in, it was already chaotic inside.

Every light was on, I could feel heat coming from the kitchen, and I could hear the banging of pots and pans. I slowly walked closer to the kitchen only to be stopped half way by someone stepping out of it.

"Oh Goku your home, it's so nice to see you!" Chi-Chi proclaimed loudly. She was standing there steering a bowl of what I was assuming was pancake batter. She was also smiling from ear to ear. I was glad to hear cheer and not anger in her voice.

"Ummm…yeah, what's all this?" I asked.

"Oh don't tell me you forgot?" Again there was no hatred in her voice.

"Uhhh, well kind of"

She laughed "Gohan and Videl are coming over for breakfast this morning."

"Oh yeah your right!" I almost yelled. With everything that had been going on I had completely forgotten.

"Yep, could you go and wake up Goten for me? They will be here soon" and with that she went back into the kitchen.

I started to ascend the stairs. I thought it was a strange how unusually cheerful she had been. I guessed she was just trying to forget last night. It was still a strange experience though. _When was the last time Chi-Chi said 'yep'?_

I woke up Goten liked she asked and we both waited patiently at the kitchen table. Is it wrong that I'm a sucker for a good meal? I offered to help her, but she refused. Every time she cooks or does the dishes I offer to help but she doesn't let me. Even though she complains about it all the time I think she actually likes it. I guess it makes her feel important.

We all heard the door bell ring and Goten and I shared a look of excitement.

"They're here!" He proclaimed and ran for the door.

A few seconds later he returned with Gohan and Videl following him. They both looked tired. I've always known Gohan isn't much of a morning person and I guess Videl isn't either.

"Morning…" He grumbled while rubbing his eyes.

"Did you sleep well?" I asked happily. They both answered with a guttural sound that I assumed meant yes.

Breakfast went about the same way breakfast always does in our home, with everyone with Saiyan blood in them inhaling all the food they can, and everyone who's didn't was stuck watching in amazement. I remembered hearing Chi-Chi tell Videl that it was just something she would have to get use to.

Afterwards Goten went outside to play and Chi-Chi made Gohan help her with the dishes. It was to 'help him practice' she said. I sat at the table with my chin on my fist as I looked out the window.

"Are you okay Mr. Son?" Videl asked nicely. Somehow I had forgotten that we were sitting at the same table.

"Your very polite Videl, but please call me Goku, 'Mr. Son' just makes me feel old" I said and smiled. There was still sadness in my voice however.

"Okay, well are you alright Goku?"

"What do you mean?"

"You just seem…unhappy. I mean, you've always seemed so upbeat, but today you seem down" She had a lot of concern in her voice. Videl and I hadn't really spoken that much and even when we did it didn't go much beyond the basic every day chat.

"I just have a lot on my mind, but I'm alright. Thanks for the concern". I made sure that my normal happy voice was back.

She nodded and went back to drinking her coffee.

It was then that I realized that it would be hard for me to keep the situation I was in a secret. I always had a habit of caring my emotions on my face and I knew I couldn't keep everything a secret forever. I don't like to lie, but it's not like I'm doing something wrong.

I looked around the room for something to distract me from my thoughts, but all I could find was Videl. She was looking at Gohan, her hands circled around her cup, and she had a genuine smile on her face.

"He loves you, you know" I broke our silence.

"Oh…ahh you think?" She said nervously her cheeks turning red. This time she was the one that forgot she wasn't alone.

"No I don't think, I know."

"Really?"

"Yep"

Again we went silent. I don't know what made me tell her, but what ever the reason I decided it was best to try and give her the best advice possible. The only way I could do that was by asking a question first.

"Do you love him?" I asked her in the most serious voice she had ever heard me have. She turned back to me, first in shock by how different my voice had become, then with a serious look that matched my own.

She looked back at Gohan just in time to see Chi-Chi yell at him for breaking a dish. She took a few seconds and looked back with a smile.

"Yeah…yeah I do"

"Good, could you do me a favor?" My normal voice had returned.

"What?"

"Don't let him go. Tie him to a tree, chain him to a rock, or do what ever it takes. Just don't let him slip through your fingers"

At first she seemed confused by what I said, or maybe she was just surprised. Either way her expression changed to a confident one.

"You got it"

After about an hour more Gohan and Videl started to leave. I knew there would a lot of confusion and talking when they did, so I knew that was my chance to make it to the phone.

Like I predicted once they started heading for the door Chi-Chi and Goten started barraging them with request. Goten asking if they could stay longer and Chi-Chi started to want them about every signal danger that they could encounter on the way home.

I silently made my way back to the kitchen where our phone was. Then I quickly pressed the right sequence of numbers and it started to ring.

First ring….nothing.

Second ring…still nothing.

I remember hearing Bulma talk for hours about time and how it works, but I don't remember hearing her tell me about time randomly standing still. I knew it wasn't, but it was moving agonizingly slow.

Third ring….nothing again.

"Come on" I whispered into the receiver hoping that some how she could hear me.

My prayers were answered half way threw the fourth ring.

_"Hello"_ I heard come from the other end. It was a sad voice, but it was _her_ voice and to my ears there is no better sound.

"Bulma! Hi it's me Goku. How are you"? I said franticly.

_"Um…fine I guess. Goku…I can't thank you enough for last night"._

"It's fine Bulma…" I knew what I had to say but the words were having trouble finding there way out. I guess I just wanted to hear her talk some more. "….listen, I was wondering if it would be okay if I went over there. You know… just to see how you're doing".

_"I don't know Goku…what bout Chi-Chi? I bet she was pretty mad last night. What did you tell her? _Her voice was starting to sound regretful.

"She doesn't know anything she doesn't need to know" I replied quickly.

_"Huh…great, now I've got you lying to your wife" _she said softly.

"Bulma you know it's not that simple…" I was running out of things to say fast. I could tell that Gohan and Videl were finally about to go that meant I didn't have much time. I had to think fast.

"But I've already told Goten I was going, so of course he wants to go with me so he can play with Trunks. He made me promise him he could go. I could always send you a picture of his sad disappointed face after I tell him we can't".

At first she was silent then I could hear a small laugh. _"That was a low blow and you know it! You're lucky your mind is getting almost as fast as your hands"!_

"So is that a yes?" I asked happily.

_"…yeah…why not"?_

"Great I'll be there as fast as you can blink" I cheered.

_"I'll be waiting"_ and with that she hung up.

I hung up the phone just as Chi-Chi walked back in the room. _Perfect timing_ I thought.

"Who was that?" She asked without looking at me. She walked swiftly across the room to the counter where she had already started cooking dinner.

"It was Bulma...she asked if Goten wanted to go over to Capsule Corp for the day. I figured I could go with him?"

"Oh…I guess so. Will you be back in time for dinner?" Again she didn't look away from the vegetable she was chopping.

"Of course" I answered immediately. I was still riding a high from knowing that I would see Bulma soon, so my voice must have sounded very cheerful even for me.

"Alright I guess" she said softly. By now I was standing next to her but she was still looking down. There was something unexplainable in her eyes. The best way to describe it would be a mixture of anger and regret.

"Thanks Chi-Chi" I said and kissed her softly on the check.

I walked away and when I reached the door I took another look over my shoulder. She didn't turn and kept doing what she was doing. I knew she was upset, but what could I do? Besides even though it sounds bad, at the time I couldn't find the need to care.

From there I went outside where Goten was standing in front of a tree in a fighting stance. I knew he was about to hit it with an energy blast. I used my stealth to sneak up behind him and whispered. "What are you doing?"

He jumped when he heard my voice. "Oh I wasn't doing anything!"

"Surrrrre" I said as I walked past him. "But if your to busy doing that I guess I could go to your Aunt Bulma's by myself".

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" He shouted as he ran after me. Goten had started calling Bulma 'Aunt Bulma' about a year ago. After Trunks started calling me 'Uncle Goku' Goten soon followed suit.

I stopped and waited for him to catch up. When he did he asked "Are we flying?"

"We could…or we could get there a lot faster" I said and put my two fingers on my forehead. Then I extended my other hand to him.

He happily took it, and I concentrated on Capsule Corp and more pacifically Bulma. With in a second the wilderness in front of us disappeared and was replaced with a huge back yard.

"There you are! You took forever!" A certain blue eyed boy yelled the second we had arrived. Trunks stood about a few feet in front of us with his hands on his hips and behind him stood Bulma. Goten and I had appeared in the middle of the back yard.

"I guess the speed of light isn't fast enough for you" I laughed.

The boys ran towards each other and instantly started sparing. I walked past them and looked down with a grin on my face.

Then I looked up and there she was standing there with a dark green dress on. She was smiling, but I could tell she was faking. It was her eyes that gave her away. Her big beautiful eyes always looked like the sky right before it rains when she was sad. I could also feel everything she was feeling at the moment and I didn't feel all that great.

"Come on Dad fight with us!" Goten shouted

"Yeah!" Trunks added.

I looked back and answered. "In a minute boy's"

They both made groans of disappointment but continued to play.

Finally after what seemed like a century I reached her. She looked up at me and the small smile she had looked like it was about to fade away.

"How are you doing?" I asked in a low whisper.

"You know you asked me that five minutes ago. Do really think my mood has changed that much?" Her voice was low and horse.

"Well….I'm here now. Does that help?" She smiled and I'm pretty sure it was the first genuine smile she's had all day.

"A little" she answered. The she motioned for me to follow her to the wall of the house and I did. When she got there she turned around and lined against it with her arms crossed. I moved to her left and did the same.

"So what do you want to talk about?" Bulma asked.

"Well...I'm pretty sure you know".

"Did you find him?" She asked quickly.

"How did you know I looked"? I asked only slightly surprised by what she said.

"I just know you Goku"

"Well…I didn't. I looked everywhere and I couldn't find a trace of him. That's kind of one of the reasons I wanted to talk to you. Did he take one of your ships?"

She looked off into space for a minute and said "Why do you want to find him so badly? Did you forget your promise?"

"No…." was all I could say. I had almost forgotten that she didn't want me to do anything. We became silent and she looked of into the distances. I didn't know what to say. I've never been that great with words.

"Bulma I don't get it…" I said with a hint of aggression. She looked back at me.

"…if this had happened when we were younger you wouldn't have wasted a second in telling me to go kick the guy's a…butt" I said quickly.

She gave me a smirk. "You know Goku I'm a big girl. You can say 'ass' in front of me"

"I know…I just don't like doing it". I never like to curse in front of a woman. It was something my grandfather had taught me. It was a part of his whole 'be nice to girls' speech. I've had my slip ups of course, but I have a pretty good record. Besides by doing what he taught me it keeps a part of him alive.

"You know what!" She said suddenly pulling me out of my thoughts. "You're right! Why am I just sitting here moping around when I should find that jerk and have you kick his ass! That's what I want you to do Goku help me find him and then give him the beating of his life!' When she was done she crossed her arms in victory.

She had a satisfied look on her face and devilish smirk, but I knew what she was really feeling.

"You don't really want me to do that" I whispered. Her stance instantly changed and she let out a groan.

"Your right, I don't, and I don't know why. I mean…I'm so incredibly mad at him, but every time Vegeta does something wrong I always find a way to forgive him".

She was getting sadder by the second. She turned around and started walking towards the doorway that leads into the house. At first I thought she was going to go inside but when she got there she stopped. She sat down in the doorway and leaned against one side. I followed her and sat the same way against the other side.

"I don't think this is something that can be forgiven" I said in a determined voice that made her jump a little. She brought her knees to her chest and laid her head on them.

"I know it isn't…" she said softly as she looked out into the yard. I followed her eyes and saw that she was watching the boys play. They were exchanging punches and kicks but none of it was serious.

We just sat there and we both lost track of time. I don't know how long we were silent but after a while Bulma broke it.

"To be young…right"?

"Your still young Bulma" I replied neither of us looking away from the action happening on the other side of the yard.

She laughed "You've never been a very good liar Goku".

"I'm serious" I replied as I turned back to look at her. Sure Bulma had a few new wrinkles here and there but she still looked very young.

She looked back at me and our eyes meet.

I just find it amazing. I have faced destroyers of worlds, rulers of the universe, and evil so terrible that even hell itself has trouble containing it, and I never showed fear. I always stood with my head held high while I stood directly in they're path. And yet…all she has to do is look me in the eye and I can feel myself tremble. She takes my breath away as if she is this unstoppable force that I could never hope to stop, and I don't think I want to stop it.

I was memorized by her gorgeous blue eyes and I felt like I couldn't move. I eventually sifted my position and looked away.

"Goku…what's wrong?" She asked with concern in her voice.

"Nothing…I've just… got a lot on my mind that's all" It was hard to talk my throat was dry and I stared at the ground in front of me, because I thought if I looked at her again that I'd never be able to look away.

Again we were silent and she broke it.

"He didn't take one of our ships; but Capsule Corp is hardly the only place to get one"

I replied with a simple nod.

"So what are you going to do? Get a ship of your own and go after him?" She asked.  
I looked over and she was looking at the blue sky. I did the same and started talking.

"No, I wouldn't know where to look. I guess all I can do is wait for him to come back".

"And then what?" She asked.

I had to think about how to answer. I knew exactly what I wanted to do, but I also knew that I couldn't do it. I found the courage to look over at her again and I was kind of glad that she was still looking to the sky.

"What he did was wrong and one day he'll have to pay for it. I promise I won't fight him if I can avoid it, but I can't just do nothing Bulma. I have to at least talk to him".

"I understand…he usually comes back after a few weeks".

"Wait has this happened before!" I asked immediately.

She looked at me and I had to look away. "No but we've gotten into intense fights before and he just takes off for a while. Then he comes back after a few weeks. Are-are you sure you're alright Goku"?

I decided it was pointless to continue to look away because eventually she would catch on to what I was feeling. I was never the type to back away from a challenge so I convinced myself that it was my challenge to look at her without drooling.

"Just-just itching to get over there" I motioned over to where the boys we sparing. She smiled and I smiled back. Then we both looked over at them and watched. They half played and half seriously spared for a little bit longer until Bulma spoke

"You should probably get home…Chi-Chi is probably worried" she said softly.

I just looked at her and in the most confident voice I had used all day said happily "There's no where in the universe I rather be right now".

She nodded and we both looked back at the action.

Trunks stood proudly with his hands balled into fist on his hips. They both had clashed over and over with neither of them able to gain an advantage. Trunks apparently took this momentary cease fire as chance to gloat.

"Is that the best you got?" He shouted across the yard to Goten.

Goten stood in his familiar fighting stance and he didn't seem fazed by Trunks' words. "I'm not done yet!"

"Remember! No going Super Saiyan!" Trunks proclaimed pointing an accusing figure at the younger boy.

"I don't have to go Super Saiyan to beat you. My Dad taught me a new move…" with that Goten raised his hands and clinched them into fist. He began to gather his energy and he started to admit a red aura around his body. I knew exactly what was coming.

"Kaio-ken!" He yelled and red flames irrupted around him.

All Trunks could do was stand there with his mouth open. He had never seen Goten use that move and he thought he knew _all _of Goten's moves.

Goten rushed him in a blur of red. Trunks tried to prepare himself by getting into his fighting stance but he wasn't fast enough. Before he knew what was happening Goten was right in front of him. He swung wildly trying to stop him but all he found was air.

Trunks looked confused for a moment, but then he felt Goten's energy behind him. He turned around to see Goten floating there with a smile on his face and his fist over his head.

Trunks tried to move but it was too late. Goten swung his fist like a large club and it smacked into the side of Trunks face. A small amount of blood squirted out of his mouth and he began to fly backwards with great speed.

He hit the white fence that divided the yard from the neighbor's yard and it shattered. He flew a few more yards and hit the ground. He slide for a few more feet until he finally came to a stop. When he did he let out a small groan of pain.

I looked back at Goten who was standing where the fence use to be with his hand still in a fist. I looked at Trunks with a concerned look. He must have felt my eyes on him so he looked at me with a look of guilt.

"I…I didn't mean to" he said.

"Wh-what happened?" Bulma asked and ran towards Trunks.

It just accorded to me that she hadn't seen any of that. It must have been one big blur to her, but to my eyes they were actually moving pretty slow.

Trunks was all the way on the other side of the neighbor's yard. He raised his head slowly and pushed himself off the ground. He was holding the right side of his jaw when Bulma got to him.

"Oh sweetie are you okay!" Bulma cried. She reached down and removed his hand from his jaw which reviled a small line of blood coming from his mouth. She began looking over him in a very mother like manure.

"I'm fine Mom! I can take a punch. Even if it is a sucker punch!"

"It was not a sucker punch! I'm just better then you!"

"Goten!" I shouted. He nearly jumped and then turned to look at me. "What did I tell you about using the Kaio-ken?"

He put his feet together and held his hands behind his back. "Um…that's it is an extremely dangerous for both myself and my opponent, and that I should only use it in a life threatening situation".

"Well was that a life threatening situation?"

"Uhhh…no…but I couldn't let him win!"

"It's not over yet!" Trunks suddenly shouted as he rushed for Goten. Goten saw this and prepared for round two.

"Boys wait!' Bulma shouted. That was all I needed to hear.

They were about to meet each other again, but I quickly got between them and grabbed them both by the backs of there shirts. Then I raised them both to my level.

"Enough" I commanded. "You should do what your mother tells you" I motioned towards Trunks. "And you should do what your Aunt Bulma tells you because you're a guest in her house" I said to Goten.

"Yes sir" they said together in defeat.

As I lowered them back to the ground I leaned in and whispered to Goten "Nice punch".

He smiled but made sure that no one else saw.

"Okay you two I think that's enough destruction for one day. You should go inside and clean up" Bulma said. She was standing in front of the three of us with a small smile on her face and her hands on her hips.

"Yes Ma'am" They said in unison and dragged there feet as they walked past her. She turned around and watched as they entered the large building.

"Geez who would have thought that you could take charge so well when it comes to parenting" She said and turned back around.

"Well…" was all I could think of to say. I put my arms behind my head and looked up at the sky.

She laughed and turned back at the spot where a fence use to be. "Well that's just great. I can't wait until she gets home and sees this".

"Easy fix" I said simply. "I can fix it for you"

"Oh no that's okay you've done enough for me today" She said softly. She turned towards me and it felt like time was moving slowly. When she finally made it all the way around the first thing I saw were her eyes.

Maybe it was the sun reflecting off of them or maybe it was because they were shining with gratitude, either way, in all of the years I have known Bulma that moment her eyes seemed brighter then I had ever seen them. This time I didn't look away. Not just because I couldn't, but because I didn't want to.

There was no denying it now, because I had never been so sure of anything in my life. To say I loved her wouldn't be enough. What I felt for her was beyond love, or at least what I thought love could be.

What happened next was all a blur. The boys came back out and Bulma suggested that Goten and I should head home. He decided the Nimbus was the best way to get home and he called it. We all said our good-byes and Goten climbed on the yellow cloud.

Eventually whatever was preventing me from talking, moving, or even breathing wore off and I became aware of my surroundings again. Bulma walked over to me and embraced me in a hug. I instinctively embraced her back.

"Thanks for everything Goku; you don't know how much it means" she whispered in my ear and the hair on the back of my neck stood up. I also couldn't help but notice how nice she smelled.

"I'll always be here for you" I said happily. Her emotions seemed to flare up at that moment and for the first time scents I had been there she was truly happy and content.

She let me go and stepped back. By now that dream like state I had been in was gone and the world seemed right again. I playfully hoped on the Nimbus and gave her and Trunks the Son salute.

They both waved back and the Nimbus cloud began to lift towards the sky. "See ya"! I shouted.

As I watched her image slowly fade away I realized that it wasn't over yet and I felt a hint of sadness. I realized that the high I was on wasn't going to last. A storm was coming. One that we would both have to get through.

I don't know how long it will take, but I will be waiting. In the end that was all I could do. I had to wait for Vegeta to come back from where ever he was. I had to wait and see if I would ever get to tell Bulma how I felt. I had to wait and see if I could look Chi-Chi in the eyes knowing that I had never truly been in love with her. I had to wait and see if any of us would get out of this without it destroying us.

_tbc._

* * *

_Well what did ya think? Yeah its kind of long...but what can I say, I couldn't stop! I dedicate this chapter to my sister. I wasn't even planing for Trunks to be in this story, but she bugged me day in and day out about putting him in it (she is a totaly Trunks fangirl !) so here ya go sis. As always I love to read your reviews._


	5. Chapter Four: Fading Memories

**Chapter Four: Fading Memories**

I find it kind of funny. I can't remember my first word, I can't remember my first step, and I can't remember the first punch I ever through, but I remember the first time I saw her sad…

* * *

_It was a sunny day, one that would make most people happy, but she wasn't._

_I was sitting in the back seat of the car right behind where the driver would be. The top was down and the wind was blowing through my hair. There was no driver in the seat in front of me this time because Oolong was on the outside of the car changing the tire. I would have offered to help him, but seeing that I had only seen a car for the first time a few days ago, I didn't think I could help much._

_I got tired of looking at the back of the seat and I turned my attention to the person in the passenger seat._

_She was my friend, my __**first**__ friend and I couldn't tell what was wrong with her._

_Her elbow was on the door and her cheek was resting in the palm of her hand. The wind was still blowing and it was making her hair dance behind her head. She let out a sigh and continued to look out into the distance._

_I stood up and flipped out of the car. Then I walked over to the other side and stood in front of her. She didn't recognize my presents._

_"What's wrong"? I asked._

_She seemed surprised by my voice and she looked down at me quickly "Hmm…oh nothing I guess. I'm just a little homesick"._

_I didn't understand the tone her voice was in. I didn't understand why she said nothing was wrong when something clearly was. I didn't even understand what the word 'homesick' meant, but I knew I hated seeing her like that, and I knew I had to make her happy again._

_But what could I do?_

_I stood there and thought about it for a few seconds. Then out of nowhere a brilliant idea come to me 'that's perfect!' I thought._

_I started to run away and I passed Oolong who was angrily muttering to himself. "Fix the car Oolong, don't complain Oolong"_

_I laughed softly as I went passed him and I headed for the wilderness._

_"Now where are you"? I said to myself as I started to look around. I covered as much ground as I could with out going to far from the car. I looked in ever bush and around every tree, but I hadn't found something that I liked._

_But then I got extremely lucky._

_There it was, sticking out of a patch of grass. I ran over to it and slowly pulled it from the ground. I remember thinking that it was perfect in everyway._

_I quickly ran back and I noticed that Oolong was finishing up and placing his tools in the trunk. 'Just in time'_

_I reached her car door and she looked down at me._

_"Where'd you go"? She asked._

_"Around…" I said happily and made sure to keep the treasure I had found behind my back._

_"What do you have behind you're back"? She asked curiously._

_"Oh nothing…" I responded._

_She raised an eyebrow "what is it"?_

_I never planned to keep it from her for long. Just long enough to catch her interest. I slowly but surely moved my hand from behind me and presented it to her._

_It was a blue rose with a long green stem. It still had some dew on it that reflected the sun and made it seem like it was giving off a light blue glow. It was perfect. Just like her._

_"Goku…why are you-"?_

_"I saw that you were sad. Then I remembered that the lady in the box was sad and the man brought her some flowers and she was happy again. Ya see…it's just like you, pretty and blue"._

_She looked at it for a moment and then she looked at me. There wasn't much of a reaction on her face and it felt like the world was standing still. But then she smiled._

_"Your cute kid, I'll give you that" She laughed and took it from me._

_She sat there for a few seconds and twirled it between her figures._

"_All right that should do it" Oolong proclaimed as he headed for the drivers seat._

_"Finally" Bulma said with a hint of announce but it wasn't enough to pull her out of her good mood. Oolong opened the door and got in._

_I effortlessly jumped in the back seat. A great feeling of victory soon came over me and I felt invincible. I looked at her from the corner of my eye and saw that the smile I had put on her face was still there._

_"Alright let's go"! I said._

_And with that our adventure continued…_

* * *

I can remember that like it was an hour ago, every sight, every smell, and every little detail. I'm not sure why that memory was pushed to the front of my brain but I can't remember a time when victory felt better then at that moment.

Suddenly I heard a voice and it dragged me back to reality.

"Are you ready?" 18 asked.

I pressed my back foot harder into the ground and the sand underneath it gave in a little. My left hand was in front of me balled into a fist and my left hand was at my side positioned the same way. The sun was shining, I could hear sea gulls in the sky, and the smell of sea water filled the air.

"As I'll ever be" I replied half jokingly.

As soon as the words left my lips she was off.

She came at me with a burst of punches and kicks that I hadn't seen her use before. _She was waiting for this_ I thought with a smirk.

I've come to realize that there are countless things about my life that I'll never fully understand and the reason I like fighting so much is one of them.

She tried to sweep my leg but I jumped up and brought my elbow down. She barely had time to block it with her forearm.

When I was younger I use to just think it was something unique about me. Other kids liked playing with toys and I liked punching things as hard as I could.

She hoped back and swung her left leg around but I blocked it with my forearm. I knew that was what she wanted, however, so when she tried to punch me I was ready for it and I caught her hand. Then I grabbed her foot which left her standing on one leg. Not a very good position for balance.

Later on I learned that my love of fighting went much deeper. It was in my blood.

She smirked. It was smirk that said _you think you got me?_ I decided not to give her chance to prove that theory and I let her go. I knew that her balance would still be off and that was the opening I was looking for. I crouched down and tried to sweep her right leg, the only thing keeping her standing, but she jumped when I looked up all I could see was her fist coming down.

Is it wrong that I think the art of fighting is beautiful? All of it put together makes one perfect picture. The mind games, the fluidity of motion, the thrill of victory, the thrill of defeat, and yes even the pain.

Her fist slammed into my face and the pain shot through my whole head. In the spilt second that it took her hands to reach my skull I had already thought of a counter. By now I was almost lying on the ground and she was in the air above me. Using some of my best speed I placed my hands on the ground and shot my legs strait up. They both hit her in the stomach. I brought my legs over my head and sent her flying down the beach. I rolled over and quickly stood up. She hit the ground and slid for a few more feet until she came to a stop.

I guess it's just kind of ironic. I'm at peace the most when I'm fighting.

She quickly stood up and brushed off her pants to get the sand off. She turned around and looked at me with a small smile on her face.

"You seem distracted. I didn't think that move was going to work" She called out. Given the slight kindness I heard in her voice I knew our little sparing match was over.

"Your just getting better" I called back.

She started walking back and I turned to the open door of KAME house. "Okay guys. Its over!" I shouted.

I placed my hands on my hips and watched as they all walked out. First Goten, then Krillin and Marron, and last but not least Master Roshi.

Goten and I had decided to go to the island for a while. We meet up with everyone there and some how in our conversation 18 and I decided to have a couple of sparing matches. Krillin then suggested that everyone else should wait inside 'and hide for cover'. I didn't really agree with him, but who was I to argue?

"Did ya win Mommy"? Marron asked and ran up to her mother. The blonde haired women picked her up and said simply "It was a draw".

I watched them with a smile on my face until I felt a tug on my leg. I looked down and I saw Goten's face looking up at me.

"You didn't try your hardest. I could feel it" he said proudly.

I bent down and told him "If I tried my hardest there wouldn't be an island here anymore".

He nodded happily and ran along the beach. Marron indicated that she wanted to play to, so 18 put her down softly. She followed him as he ran towards the ocean. He stopped before he got there and watched the waves come and go.

"You know it's funny" I heard Krillin's voice say from behind me. He walked up beside me and I asked "What?"

"I can actually remember a time when I was about as strong as you"

"Those were the days" I laughed.

I turned around and started to walk towards the entrance to the house and I saw Master Roshi sitting on the steps. _Just the man I want to talk to _I thought.

"How you doing old timer?" I asked happily and sat down next to him.

"Pretty good boy" He replied. We simply sat there for a while and watched as Goten and Marron started to build a sand castle. Krillin and 18 went to a table near by and watched the two children play as well.

"You know watching him ran around this beach makes it feel like its twenty years ago" The wise man told me.

"Has it really been that long? It felt like yesterday" I said softly.

We went silent for a while and because there wasn't really anything else to look at we watched the children play.

"Bet ya can't catch me!" Goten proclaimed happily and ran down the beach.

"Oh yeah!" Marron yield back as she started her pursuit. I wondered how long Goten would toy with her.

As I expected, no matter how hard that blonde little girl tried she couldn't catch him. They ran back and forth and it was apparent she was getting tired. After a while Goten was a few yards ahead of her and he turned back with a mischievous grin on his face.

Using some of his best speed he appeared instantly in front of her and she let out a small scream while she fell from shock. Goten stood with his hands on his hips and a look of pride on his face.

Marron looked up at him with tears in her eyes. Goten's expression changed instantly and he bent down to her level. I could tell that he was genuinely concerned.

"Are-are you okay?" He asked in a shaky voice.

She looked like she was about to burst in to tears, but with one swift move she placed her hand firmly on his shoulder.

"Got you" She said with a smile.

Goten had to put his hand on the ground to stop himself from falling over. "That-that doesn't count!"

"Yeah it does" she giggled. "Goten now that I got you would you answer a question?"

Goten was still in shock form his most recent defeat but he was able to mumble out "Sure, what is it?"

"Would you be my boyfriend/" She said as cutely as anyone ever has.

"Wh-what, uh I don't ummm" Goten tried to say. The look on his face was priceless.

Master Roshi laughed "Already a lady's man!"

"Love" I said simply with a hint of announce in my voice.

"Is that what's bothering you?" He asked.

That was something I loved about him. I didn't have to use words to tell him things, he just knew. The more I think about it, his the closet thing to a father I've had since my grandfather died. I've taught my sons lessons about life that he taught me.

I didn't really know where to start, but I decided just to tell him everything I knew. Once I was finished he let out a long sigh and began stroking his beard. He was completely silent. I couldn't wait anymore so I kept taking.

"It's strange. I love Bulma, but it's more powerful then just love"

"How so?" He asked.

"It feels like something is drawing me towards her and I can feel her presence constantly. Like right now I don't even have to try and it feels like she's right next to me".

"Hmm…strange" He responded.

I watched the waves come back and forth as they made Krillin and 18's boat move up and down for a few minutes and my mind drifted to the other thing that was on my mind.

"And what am I supposed to do about Vegeta?" I asked angrily and stood up. I must have surprised Mater Roshi because he nearly fell over. "I've never hated anyone as much as him right now. Its take all the mental discipline I have to not lose control of myself". I watched as my hand formed a fist and my eyes became glued to it.

Then I felt a warm hand on my shoulder. I turned and looked at my teacher to find that he had a serious look on his face. "You know that's not the way" he said calmly.

It was like he knew the exact words to say. I instantly felt myself calm down and I let out a long sigh. "You're right" I said as I sat back down. "You and all the other great masters that have taught me didn't teach me so I could us my skills for vengeance".

"What Vegeta did can not be forgiven, but in this case there really instant much you can do".

"I know I've never felt so useless before. I spent my entire life learning how to do one thing and it can't help me here". I started to watch Goten finish making the sand castle that he and Marron had made. _At least some one is happy _I thought. Then I watched the waves come back and forth for a minute.

"Hey Goku" Krillin called.

"Yeah, what's up?" I answered impulsively.

He walked up to me with Marron in his arms and Goten and 18 following him.

"We were thinking about going into town for some ice cream, want to go?" He asked.

"Can we go to Dad?" Goten asked eagerly while waving his arms up and down. I chuckled and thought for a moment.

"Did you even ask if you could come along?" I asked him in a judging tone that I knew would remind him of his mother.

"Uh well..no..but.." He answered while looking at his feet.

"Its fine if you guys want to come along" Krillin interrupted him. I laughed and it felt good. I felt like I was running out of reason's to laugh.

"Well Goten I want to stay here a little while longer. Why don't you go with your Uncle Krillin to get ice cream and then head home? Do you think you can do that?"

"Oh yeah!" He said eagerly.

I walked over to him and placed my hand on his head. "Alright then, tell your mom I'll be home for dinner".

"Okay, come on lets go!" He shouted and ran towards the boat that was waiting. I smirked and Krillin waved good-bye "Alright see you later then".

He started to walk away, but 18 did the opposite and walked towards me. When she was in front of me she took a quick glance over her shoulder to make sure no one was behind her and then looked back.

"I think you should just kick his ass Goku" She said smoothly.

At first I was confused but then I caught on "How did you-?"

"Dr Gero wanted us to hear his screaming voice from miles away" She said while pointing at her ear. Then she casually waved good-bye "Later"

As I watched her walk to the boat I realized that she was probably one of the best examples of someone being capable of changing. She went from a murder to a loving mother in nine years. If she could change that much then maybe there is hope for Vegeta.

They left and Master Roshi walked up behind me. We both watched the ripples in the water as they slowly disappeared.

"I'm being selfish aren't I?" I asked.

"How so?" He replied.

"I'm letting what I feel for Bulma blind me. I should be able to realize that it can't be that way between us. What I should be doing is trying to help her **and **Vegeta resolve this. But I guess this really isn't a good job for me. All I know who to do is fight and even that is getting old".

"I never thought I would hear you say that" he said with the shock in his voice apparent.

"Me neither, but it feel's like there's no more battles to win. I'm starting to feel like a writer that's written every book".

"I think I can understand that. You're a flightier Goku. Always have been, always will be. You feel the need to find a great challenge, but I'm sure there are some waiting around the corner".

I laughed "Right now I rather have to deal with some powerful monster then this"

"Well you've always been good at saving the day. I'm sure your do it again" The wise old man said and headed for his favorite chair which was at it's usual place not to far away.

I closed my eyes and sat down, crossing my legs in the process. I tried letting my mind go blank which was something very hard to do at the moment. I thought about everything that was happening and I couldn't help but feel like there was an easy way out.

"Would it be wrong Master?"

"Hmm?" He responded looking away from his book.

"Would it be wrong to be selfish for once? If I just did nothing and then maybe…" I didn't have to finish that sentence.

He took a moment before he answered but after a while he said simply and smoothly "The hero's path is always filled with the most stones, in most cases the greater the hero the bigger the stones, for you they're mountains".

His words couldn't have been chosen better. They were poetic yet simple.

I've been told by many people that I'm the greatest hero of my time, but if that were true shouldn't I be able to do the right thing without hesitation? I've always been able to see the line between right and wrong but lately it's becoming harder to see. None of that matters however. I still know what the right thing to do is.

"So what are you going to do?' Roshi asked.

I turned around and smirked at him "What I've always done. Look passed my own feelings and help my friends".

It's going to be hard, but I've always believed that if it wasn't hard then there was no point in trying. I have to forget what I feel and put everyone before myself. The future is impossible to see and I don't know if I'll be able to set anything right again, but that night I made sure Bulma found one hundred blue roses on her bed.

_tbc._

* * *

_Well there ya go. I'm not really in love with this chapter but i think it's ok. Don't worry the good stuff is coming up next. Remember I like reviews!_


	6. Chapter Five: Free Falling

**Chapter Five: Free Falling**

Days became a week and not much changed. Everyone's lives went on about the same as they always had, except for mine and hers of course. The world kept turning, the sun made night turn into day and then back again, nobody got hurt, nobody died, but we both knew that things weren't right.

I visited her every day. She put on a bright smile and told me she was feeling better every time she saw me, but I could tell she was lying. She just wanted me to stop worrying about her. I talked to her every chance I got and I tired my best to make her feel better, but all of my kind words seemed to fall on deaf ears.

She was falling and I couldn't catch her.

But I have to keep trying to get through to her. It would be a lot easier if I wasn't full of doubts to.

So here I was standing in front of her door and waiting for her to answer. It had been about a week since Vegeta left.

The door opened quickly and two dresses were pushed into my chest.

"Which one do you like the best?" Bulma asked with one in each hand. I was surprised but decided to follow her demands.

I looked at them and they seemed about the same to me. One was a dark blue and the other was a light green. I was sure each of them was worth a small fortune.

"Uhhh… you know I've never been good at this stuff" I muttered.

"Oh come on you have to like one over the other. It's been bugging me all day" She pleaded with me. I looked her in the face and she made a playful frown.

"Blue has always been your color I guess…" I said with a smirk.

She looked at me for a second or two as is she wanted to argue but she decided against it. "Blue it is then".

Then she backed up and waved for me to come inside and I did as she asked. She started walking down the hallway and I didn't bother asking where she was going because I had a pretty good idea. The kitchen of course.

Since fashion was now on my mind I took note of what she was wearing. It was just a simple pink shirt with an orange skirt that I had seen her wear a dozen times before. This time, however, I couldn't help but stare at her legs longer then I should have. After a few seconds I snapped out of it and rolled my eyes at myself. _Like you just noticed _I thought to myself.

"So how has Chi-Chi and the kids been?" She asked.

"Oh…fine I guess. There's not much to tell" I said quickly but then my mind remembered one of the few good things I had learned in the past week. "Except…I think Gohan is getting close to popping the question to Videl".

"Really?" She shouted and turned around. "Are you sure?"

I smiled "Well he didn't exactly say anything about it, but he keeps asking weird questions and I just put a few things together in my head".

"Wow…Gohan married? That sounds so weird. Come on you have to tell me more" she proclaimed and grabbed my rest. Then she started pulling me towards the kitchen.

We eventually got there and sat at the table across from each other. I told her everything I knew and she was still pretty surprised.

"So how does 'Grandpa Goku' sound to you?" She said with a smirk.

"Whoa, 'Grandpa'? Are you trying to make me feel old?" I laughed.

"If you're old then what does that make me? Ancient?" We both started to laugh but we were interrupted by a loud ringing from the other side of the room. I turned my head and saw that it had come from the microwave.

"You were prepared" I said.

"Well you don't think I would invite you over here without having food to eat do you"? She asked smoothly and got up from the table.

"I guess you know me to well"

We talked some more while we eat Bulma's 'world famous microwavable pizzas' and she seemed to stay in a good mood. Towards the end I noticed that I hadn't really asked about what she had been doing lately.

"What about you? How have things been?" I said as I finished the last piece.

"Oh pretty much the same" she answered and began gathering the plates from the table. "Trunks got sent to the principle again though".

"What for?" I asked as she started walking towards the sink.

"For 'being to aggressive' in gym class. I already told him about making sure no one gets hurt but that doesn't stop him from trying to show off" she said with a smirk and placed the last plate in the sink.

"Being overly aggressive is in his blood" I said with a sigh.

She stopped what she was doing for a split second. Then she started again and acted like she hadn't stopped at all. It took me a second or two but then I realized that what I said could be interrupted the wrong way.

"I meant his Saiyan blood…" I said softly.

"I know" she replied quickly.

Then things got really quite. Up until then both of us seemed happy avoiding the elephant in the room named Vegeta. I hated it that he could make her feel this way even when he wasn't there.

I don't know how it happened but with neither of us talking we made the already huge building seem even bigger. The only thing that could be heard was the sound of the water coming from the faucet and the clicking of the plates bumping into each other.

Then something hit me. Why is Bulma doing the dishes? I had only seen her do it a hand full of times since I had known her and that included the two times I had seen her do it recently. She must have a dozen robots to do it for her. _She must be trying to take her mind off things_ I thought.

We both became silent and I thought another awkward silence was coming but she refused to let it start.

"So do-do you want some desert?" She asked without turning around.

"No…I'm not hungry"

Then that silence we were trying to avoid came.

Luckily for me I had a pretty good idea about what she wanted me to say. I let out a sigh and stood up from the chair. I stood behind it and leaned on it with both of my hands. I kept looking at my seat until I felt her turn around.

She walked slowly over and placed a cup of coffee on the table with out making a sound. Then she sat down and looked at me. By then the words had formed in my head and I was ready to speak.

"He'll come back you know" I said smoothly as if she should have already known it. Then as if she expected me to say something like that she challenged my comment.

"How do you know?" Her voice was confident but still a little shaky.

"Because I would."

Her response was pretty simple considering she didn't use any words. She looked at me and I instantly knew what she wanted to say. _You aren't like him._

"We're a lot more a like then anyone realizes. By now I'm sure he feels pretty awful, about what happened. It wouldn't surprise me if he was on his way right now."

That was all I had. I spent the last week trying to think of anything that would make her feel better and I was out of ideas. Luckily for me she seemed to find comfort in the last few things that I said and we didn't talk about it for the rest of the time that I was there.

I eventually left and I didn't feel any better or worse about the situation.

I needed to think, and if I thought back far enough I could remember a place where I was particularly good at that.

* * *

The Lookout is an amazing place.

I remember it like it was yesterday. The better part of three years of training up here was an experience that would be hard to forget after all. What I remember the most however, is learning the ability to concentrate here and ever since then I've been able to think here better then anywhere else.

As I look around the place more memories resurfaced in my mind.

was a difficult teacher. Day after day of physical training was something I was use to, but some how he always made things seem harder then they actually were. The worse part of his training was being so alone. Weeks would pass and he would be the only person I would see or talk to. It was like that when it was just me and my Grandfather, but since I started to explore the world I had gotten use to contact with other people. So while I was becoming stronger it felt like I was also slowly losing my mind.

That's when Kami came around more often.

Of course he was always there, but he almost never came out and talked to me. Then one day he was the one that woke me up in the morning and told me that we would be doing a different kind of training.

"_It's Mr Popo's job to train your body, so I will train your mind…" _he told me.

It was then that he introduced me to a game he called 'chess'. He brought out a playing board along with several pieces and placed them between us. He explained the rules to me and it didn't take long for him to realize that he would have to explain them to me several more times. I was very…naïve at the time of course.

Eventually I understood the game enough to play and Kami told me why he was teaching me how to play. _"This is a game of strategy, and in any battle a warrior with no strategy is almost all ways the one that falls"_

We began to play and to no ones surprise I lost. We played again and the result didn't change. He played me three more times and then said that it was enough for today. I was thankful because I truly thought that the game was unbelievably boring.

From then on, once or twice a week, we would play each other and the result would never change. Naturally as time passed I got better at it but a victory was still to far away for me to reach it.

Although I never found it fun to begin with, eventually I started to hate it when I was forced to play it. However, like all difficult training, I got through it.

When I left the tower, I left without a single victory.

* * *

"It's your move" a rough voice pulled me out of my memories.

"I know" I said happily and turned back around so I could stare at the board. I was once again engaged in a chess match and in a way my opponent was the same. I can already feel my chances of winning slipping away.

"You've been busy…" Piccolo told me with little emotion.

"I'm guessing you know what's going on then." I replied and moved a piece.

He looked at the pieces for a moment before moving a piece and replying. "I know enough."

"Do you ever get tired of knowing _everythin_g?" I asked with a smirk on my face. I put my chin in my palm and used my free hand to move another piece.

"As a matter of fact, I do" he said coldly and crossed his arms, with his eyes never leaving the board. We sat in silence for a few seconds before he decided on his next move. He took out one of my pawns and placed it in the growing pile next to the board.

I was briefly distracted because I had forgotten just how many of my pieces that he had defeated, but his forced cough made me know that I was letting my mind wander farther then I should.

"So?" he asked in a serious voice.

"There really isn't much I can do is there? I just have to wait until Vegeta gets back." I explained and made my move.

The stoic Namakian entwined his fingers and held them in front of his face as he scanned the board for his next move. "And what will you do then?"

I shrugged and looked at the sky. "I'm not sure. It's something I should let them resolve right? I only want to get more involved if I have to."

He shock his head and made is move. "You're already involved. In fact I have a good idea of just how _involved_ you are."

"I haven't done anything wrong." I said sternly and put my piece into position with a little force.

"I know that. The point I'm trying to make is that regardless of what happens in the future you are already emotionally involved in this matter. This is important to me not only because I am your friend but because of your impotents to the Earth. You are Earth's strongest force for good and as a result your actions affect every person on the planet, maybe even every being in the universe." Piccolo said calmly while he made his move.

"It only involves us…I think your making this a bigger deal then it has to be." I said smoothly and took one of his pieces.

"Even in a play the audience is part of the performance…" he said softly. I acted as if his statement was too much for me to understand. He slowly made his move and let out a sigh.

"In truth, I have no experience in this sort of situation, although I believe that Vegeta is in the wrong with all of my being." He said with a slight hint of anger in his voice. "Can you be sure that when he returns that the two of you won't come to blows?"

I glanced briefly at the board and then back to the sky. I couldn't give him an answer that was completely truthful so I was at a lose for words. I wasn't as angry as I had been, but I could still feel the burning of hatred in my heart and mind. In the end I decided to do what I always did when I didn't know what to say. I smiled.

"I guess we're just have to wait and see!" I told him happily and moved one of my pieces to a new spot.

At first his express was one of announce and if I didn't know better I thought I saw him role his eyes, but as he looked down at the bored his face sifted to one of complete surprise. I followed his eyes and at first I was slightly surprised as well but then my expression changed to a genuine smile.

I had him in checkmate.

"H-how?" Piccolo muttered angrily. To see the usual stern and calm man in a state of shock and anger was truly amusing to watch.

"Well its getting late, I better head home." I said happily as if I hadn't heard him. I stood and began stretching my legs out.

"Tell me, I'd like to know." Piccolo proclaimed in a much more controlled voice. He was still sitting there with his arms crossed and glare on his face. He almost looked like a pouting child.

"I thought you said you were tired of knowing everything." I told him with a smirk.

"Goku…" he grumbled. I laughed and decided that I had teased him enough.

"I didn't think about my moves at all. I just chose the first piece that I saw and moved it to a random spot. In all of my games against Kami I realized that he always had the perfect defense. I figured that you would be the same, but I knew there was no way I could come up with a strategy that was better then yours. But every defense is set up to protect against an offenses that is based in logical moves that follow a strategy. That's why I won. There is no defense against chaos." I explained.

Piccolo's glare softened and but I could tell his ego had taken a hard shot. "In other words you got lucky."

"Pretty much! Well it actually is getting late I think I'll be heading home." I replied and took a few steps back and turned to my right.

"Very well, I assume you're leaving in the usual manner?" He said and nodded.

"Yeah, unless you installed an elevator up here" I smiled back.

"What do you think?" He told me with announce in his voice.

I waved and got into a running stance. "See you!"

With that I stared to run toward the edge of the tower. I was only going about half as fast as I possibly could but the world around me still seemed to be standing still. Eventually I reached the edge and jumped off, but I didn't try to fly. Instead I closed my eyes and let gravity take over.

I always left the tower this way. I can't explain it but there is just something about falling through the sky that I just can't get enough of. The air blowing past my ears, the wind playing with my hair, the strange feeling in my gut, all of it together just gives me such an interesting feeling. Maybe I'm just so use to flying that I forgot what it felt like to be at gravity's mercy.

I opened my eyes and looked at the seating sun. That's when I felt it. It was small as if it was trying to hide, but it was there and the moment I noticed what it was my eyes shot open.

_That energy…could it really be? _My mind raced.

I questioned it but I had no doubts. I started to feel an unbelievable mix of emotions all at once. Feeling of anger, fear, nervousness, and even a little of excitement passed through me, but I suppressed them all and became very calmed myself like I had countless times before in battle.

I didn't know if a battle of the mind or body was waiting for me but I couldn't help feel relief that things were finally in motion.

Vegeta had returned.

_Tbc._

* * *

_Has my writing gotten any better? If this Chapter feels disjointed its because I wrote it little by little over a whole year. Let me know what you think!  
_


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